


The Dragon and the Phoenix

by Lynkoln



Category: Trollhunters (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-06-14 10:31:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15386850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lynkoln/pseuds/Lynkoln
Summary: My sister and I cross over to the universe of Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia. How the hell did this happen and what are we going to do to survive?





	1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

BANG

My eyes slowly open at the sudden sound, the sleep in my eyes blurring my vision. It is waaay to early to be dealing with this. I unfurl my covers and try to untangle myself from my bedsheets, hands rubbing my tired face.

"Listen, dude, I get it. I really do. It's a Monday morning and no one wants to get up, especially during summer, so with that said get ou- What are you DOING?"

"Uh, nothing?" My sister says as she looms over me, holding a bucket of water on the verge of spilling. The book I was reading last night laying on the ground, presumably knocked over by my sister. "I'm, uh, cleaning out your fish tank? Yeah! See, new bucket of water. Your fish are gonna love it!"

"I presume it's dechlorinated?" I asked with a smirk on my face. Does she really think that she'll beat me in this war? She is a mere peasant compared to my power. I become free from my sheets and stood up, towering over her. She was wearing her usual attire: white converse, tight-fitting black jeans, a denim jacket, and a white shirt tied in a knot. Her long wavy hair was tied in a high ponytail that was threaded through her baseball cap. I'm surprised she's even dressed this early in the morning. It's like 6:00 am. She even has her crystal necklaces and shit on. Damn.

"Yeah, of course. I'll just, uh, start cleaning! Don't worry about it, sis. I've got it under control. You just get dressed and we can hang out later."

"Thanks, man! You're a life-saver. Remember to clean out the filters too, they are probably due for a change." I grinned as I grabbed my clothes for today and went into the bathroom. I close the door and giggle as I hear Aron mumbling under her breath. Hahaha, man, what a morning.

I take a quick 5-minute shower, get dressed, and head downstairs to make breakfast. We may prank and say mean things but we still love each other. She'll probably won't be as mad if I make her breakfast. I smooth down my simple outfit of a gray tank top, black shorts, and flannel jacket as I make my way down the stairs. Hmm, what should I make today? Omelet? I gather the eggs and various other ingredients to start making my masterpiece. I pour the eggy mix into the pan when my sister comes downstairs glaring at me. Grabbing a plate and some utensils, she sits down at the table waiting for her breakfast.

"How about this, truce until next week. I don't think I have any more prank ideas that would work. It's summer anyway. We can probably find something better to do than claw at each other throats."

"I dunno. You trying to catch me off guard is kind of fun. Especially when I rope you into doing my chores." I smile. I grab another plate for me and dish out the omelets. Grabbing the milk from the fridge, I fill Aron's and mine's cup and start to eat.

"Hardy har, you're so funny. Seriously though, we need better hobbies."

"Oh, speaking of hobbies! You said you wanted to hang out? What were you thinking? Not much to do outside, I'd rather stay home and take a nap." I say wiping off any eggy residue from my mouth. I grimace at the stain that is embedding itself into my tank top. Ugh.

"A nap?! You just woke up!"

"Yeah, well, what can I say? When you're rudely awakened by your baby sister, it's kinda hard to stay awake alllll dayyy."

"Ugh, you're just lazy. C'mon! Parents are gone for most of the summer, we need to do something!" Aron begged. I roll my eyes as I gather the dishes and set them in the sink. My phone dings as I get reminded that one of my friends has a birthday coming up and I still have not gotten them a present. I also notice the shopping list on the fridge. Jeez, so much stuff to do so early in the morning an I'm already tired.

"Okay fine. I need to get some stuff anyway. Get your bike, we're heading to the store." I grab my keys and wallet then head to the garage pulling on my boots.

"Bike?! Can't you just drive us there? It's already way too hot to go out and it's not even noon!"

"I could drive us there if you wanted me to lose my learner's permit. Then I wouldn't be able to drive you for like a whole year."

"Fine, fine. But you owe me a drink or something at the store!"

"Yeah, just nothing over five bucks. I need to go to the bank soon..." I sigh grabbing our backpacks and opening the door to the garage.

********

"C'mon! What is taking so long? You've been staring at the drinks for yearsss. Please. pick. something!"

"Chill out, Charley! I need to put these five dollars to good use. Now, should I get one really expensive drink or two cheap ones, or mayb..."

I tune out my annoying sister as I head over to the fridge next to her and grabbed three energy drinks. Mmm, 3/$5. I need to stock up; I'll be back my children I just need to go to the bank.

"BRB, heading to the bank."

"Did you just say 'BRB' IRL?"

"Did you just say 'IRL' IRL?" I joked looking back and smiling. I see her roll her eyes at me and continue to scour the drink section. Man, I love her so much. The small credit union comes into view as I head closer to the front of the store. An awkward conversation or two later I have 200 big ones and the impending fear that we will starve because our parents will forget to give us money to live. New note: tell parents we need more money in the bank. I close the note app on my phone and head back to where my sister was and walked into the drink aisle just as soon as she was finished choosing her drinks.

"New plan, get some snacks and stuff for this week. Like useful stuff, not any dumb crap. Meet up at the clearance section."

"Roger that, sir. Beginning mission protocol." Aron said, mock saluting me. Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. The aisles of the store seemed endless as I kept an eye out for anything important. I grabbed some extra batteries, toilet paper, chips, a head of lettuce, shampoo/conditioner, and some gift cards. Throwing my haul into the basket, I meet Aron at the clearance section and pick up some more miscellaneous goods.   
Aron looks into the cart and eyes the energy drinks.   
"Are you sure you want those? You kinda get a little, uh, spazzy when you drink them. 'Specially in the morning."

"Pfft, I'll be fine dude. I don't get THAT crazy." I reply shoving more drinks into the basket.

"You do. Last time you were on the roof dancing after you downed three of those bad boys. Limit yourself, dummy."

"Ugh, alright."

After a brief heart attack seeing how much all of this shit cost, we got onto our bikes and began to head home (after I downed an energy drink of course). The bikes tittered at every turn as the thousand pounds of our groceries tipped precariously in either direction. Maybe going grocery shopping on a whim wasn't my best idea.

"Ugh, why did you have to get so much stuff? You could o-"

"Why did I get so much stuff? Listen here, sissy, I don't know what y-" I began to retort before I was rudely interrupted.

"Listen here, Charley, if I knew you were gonna get all this, I would have stayed home instead of trying to get you out of the house! Now I've gotta lug this heavy crap around the town! You owe me."

"I know, I know. Let's just get home quick and drop off this garbage then we can do whatever you want." I sigh repositioning my backpack that is bulging with goods. Aron's posture near instantaneously straightens as she turns to me with a glint in her eyes.

"Anything?" She smiled.

"I guess since I said so, sure." I grimaced. What is she thinking? I'm not so sure about this anymore. "Remember our truce..."

"I remember! C'mon let's take a shortcut! To the forest!" She pedals off faster than I thought was possible. Surprised at her sudden burst of energy, it takes me a moment before I begin to pedal after her. We veer a sudden right as a narrow path into the forest comes into sight. Aron looks back at me with a smile on her face as she pedals faster. 

"Hahaha! It is on, sis!" Grinning I catch up behind her and squint as dirt kicks into my eyes. The forest is a mere blur as we speed through the path, stray branches hit our face as we try to overtake each other in this race. In the future, I would cringe at our disregard that we gave our groceries but that didn't matter now. 

I was happy.

This is where the story truly begins. You've read past all the character introductions, the idle banter between siblings, and sifted through this poor fool's thoughts. I have set the scene for a story that is still yet to be written. Only time will tell what end will come to pass; a tragedy or perhaps a happy ending?

In order for something to start, something needs to end. And that something was us.

********

Although the forest was fairly young relative to the large nature reserves around our neighborhood, the trees blocked quite a bit of the sunlight from hitting the path. The cool air was refreshing as we pumped our legs to gain every bit of speed we could to beat the other. The backpacks we carried were slipping haphazardly off our shoulders but did little to impede our competition.

"Hahaha!" We whoop in glee, the ending of the path getting clearer and clearer every second. A sharp turn was coming up and I was determined to win. Get ready, little sister. I pedaled faster intent on catching up before that turn. This turn would decide who would win and lose. Whilst my sister followed the path, I caught sight of the slope that would guarantee my victory. She turned- as expected- and I headed over the slope preserving my speed.

Time seemed to slow after that jump. My sister and I were neck and neck, me with the high ground. I was going to win. I would gain this victory, but it seemed fate had another idea for us. I hit the back of my sister's helmet to further ensure my win inadvertently causing her to lose control of the bike. Along with the debris from my stunt jump, many of which got caught in our wheels, proved a deadly combo. As soon as the wheels hit the pavement we were goners. Our bikes caught on each other and slingshotted us towards the street, the street which happened to have a large truck barreling towards us. It was almost comedic, really. Those scenes in movies where some guy walks into the street, then BOOM, bus? Yeah, it was like that. A lot less funny and a lot more painful though. The road rash that was forming as I slid across the asphalt left streaks of blood and skin, which would later begin to cook under the summer sun. My wrist had already broken trying to catch myself from the fall and no doubt were bruises forming all over my body. I was a bloody pulp. No doubt the same thing was happening to my little sister. I could already see the paramedics in the future frown; another pair of dead kids, another day.

The truck hasn't even hit us yet.

I stared wide-eyed at my sister who could only gape at what was happening. The truck inching ever so closer to us. More road burns, more bruises and breaks, then the truck finally hit us. I can't blame the driver for our demise, he was doing everything he could to prevent something like this happening. He paid attention to the road, looked left and right, the whole deal. It all came down to chance and luck. What crummy luck we had.

My face slammed into the grill of the truck, smearing more of my body around us. I could feel every crack and rupture from the force and I grimaced, well, I would of if my facial muscles weren't plastered on the truck. Our bodies soared through the air leaving us to tumble nearly ten feet away from our bikes.

The autopsy would later reveal most of the damage was internal; ruptured organs, shattered bones, hemorrhaging all up and down the bodies. Our faces, shins, and elbows were grated like cheese against the pavement. Not a good day to walk into the morgue with a weak stomach.

If I could have turned my head that day and look over, I would have seen my sister, my dear sister, in the same situation I was in. Broken and limp. Flying through the air like a bloody dove. How do I know all this; every aspect of our death? I don't know how or why but something wants me to remember this horrific moment. The moment our lives ended.

A deep buzzing filled my mind. It was akin to putting a battery on your tongue but it began to spread. It was so strong, louder than the brakes squealing, louder than our bodies skidding across the asphalt. It throbbed in my bones. Before I knew it, nothing. No thoughts, no feelings. Only one thing remained in my mind. I had died. My sister had died.

And I was to blame.


	2. Chapters Two: This is definitely me when I'm in a cartoon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The main characters are dead, now what?

"Good morning, Arcadia Oaks! It's your host with you at 7:30 AM. Remember to wake up the kids and send them off to school with a good breakfast; midterms will start up in a few weeks and the kids need all the help they can get until then. Today we have an interesting guest for our morning sho..."

Ugh, what the fuck? Who the hell is listening to the radio at this ungodly hour? 

I wince at the loud noises echoing around me. The radio had poor reception and static would fill in the silent spaces with its damning noise. A deep rumbling would pass every once in a while as the ground would slightly shake. My back felt cool against the hard ground but my muscles ached every time I moved. I force my eyes to open when both the light and sound started to give me a killer headache. The world is blurry around me but I can make out a large structure above me made of metal. A bridge? How the hell did I get out here? Maybe I fell asleep outside or something. God, this headache. It feels like I got hit by a tru-. Oh no. Nononononono.

"Shit! Aron, WHERE ARE YOU!?" I yell sitting up. I scan my surroundings and see concrete all around me. Was I in a canal? The ground had small bits of debris scattered around and loose rocks littered the area. The sides of the canal were lined with large grates that were presumably connected to the irrigation of wherever the hell I was and formed a steep angle towards ground level. A little disoriented, I turn my head and spotted two bikes in the middle of the canal, their kickstands holding them up next to each other. Our bikes. The bikes we died next too. And next to them I see the shape of a person on the ground.

"Shitshitshitshit, ARON!" I begin to stand up to run to her side but I am halted as searing pain begins stabbing through my right leg and forces me to the ground. Turning my head to look at my leg, I see a piece of metal sticking out of the flesh.

"Okay okay no problem just don't move and call an ambulance easy peasy this is all just a vivid hallucination and it's not really happening it was that energy drink yea just an energy drink hahahaha. Stop it, think! The first rule of stab wounds: don't take out the stabby thing cause you'll bleed out just leave it in and wait for the professionals no prob-" The words barely left my mouth before a thick burning sensation began in the wound. The flesh around the metal piece turned gray and the veins surrounding the wound had something black flow in them. My flesh seemed to slowly stitch itself back together and I could only watch in awe and fear as the metal scrap was pushed out of my leg with a squelch. New skin seemed to crawl and knit into each other until the hole was filled and all that was left were black scales covering where the wound was and a small tint of gray to the neighboring skin. I slowly reach my hand towards the patch of scales and gently touch them. Surprised, I pulled my hand back as I felt a sensation in that area. This wasn't just a scab or whatever magical fuckery equivalent of having goddamn scales appear over a stab wound on your leg was, it was alive and apart of me. I could feel my fingers brush these scales as if it were connected to me. This sensation was interesting; it felt familiar, like if you grazed your fingernails against each other but a little thicker and far stronger. Then ahead of me there was a groan.

I snap my head to the source of the sound I see Aron beginning to stir. Barely a thought manifested before I leaped to my feet, no longer crippled by my leg and ran to Aron's side.

"Hey hey, look at me, sis. You there? C'mon wake up!" I gently slap her face and nearly cry with relief as she begins to stir and take in deep breathes.

"Uh, what's going on?"

"Ohmygod, you're alive!" I smile as I hug her tight and held back the tears that were brimming in my eyes.

"Alive? What do you mean by ali- Oh my god. We freaking DIED! What the hell is going on? Is this real life? Did you rope me into hardcore drugs? Am I hallucinating? I-I, wtf?!" Aron held her head in her hand as she grasped my shirt and pulled herself into a sitting position.

"No clue what's happening, lil' sis." I smile.

"Why are you smiling like a creep?! We died! DIED, YOU SADIST!!! We were on the bikes then the truck then the ground holy crap dude what are we goi-"

"Haha, just chill lil' dude. We made it and we're safe. That's all that matters." I hug her again as she moves around to get a better look at our surrounds. She pushes me away from her as she stands up and heads towards the bikes to inspect them for any damage caused by the crash. 

"Yeah but, made it to where?" Aron asks. " We are in the middle of a ditch, in the middle of the day, in the middle of the greatest mystery. How did we get here? How long have we been...dead? Are we still dead? Are we ghosts?" She pokes and prods at her body looking for any injuries when she pulls up her jacket sleeve and froze. "Um, what is this?"

"The hell?"

On her arm were patches of some type of fluff that varied between different shades of orange and a dark gray in the shape of a large gash. Looking further down her arm I saw some kind of marking written on her wrist. It looked like a simple design of a sun, a circle with a dot inside it surrounded by triangles. I grabbed her arm and closely inspect the weird tufts and pinch some between my fingers. This wasn't fur. And the symbol wasn't drawn on.

"Feathers? What the hell is going on and why is this crap on my arm? Ouch! Don't pull it, that hurt!"

"That seems to be the question of the day, isn't it. 'What is going on'. You said it hurt when I pulled on them, like, it was apart of you?"

"Listen, it's one thing to not remember how we got someplace when our last memory was us dying and waking up with a weird tattoo, but then having freaking feathers spout out of my arm is a whole 'nother ballpark. Especially when they feel like they are hairs on my skin."

This was weird, but in retrospect, probably not the weirdest thing that could happen to someone. Plenty of things could have happened that would have been weirder than this. So we lost our memories of how we got here, maybe we did get hit by a truck but then they just dropped us off here in the canal? Which is super fucking rude by the way, atleast give us enough curtisy to dump us by a hospital? Thanks?

"Hey, you don't have any feathers on you, Charley?"

"Huh, uh, no. But I have these." I lift up my leg so she could see the weird patch of scales on my leg. "This is gonna get weirder so don't freak out. Before you woke up, I kinda had gotten stabbed in the leg with some metal an-"

"WHAT!? You got freaking STABBED!?"

"Just chill for a second; I said don't freak out! Then like, my body pushed out the metal bit and healed over with this weird bumpy scale shit. And get this: I can feel the scales too! Like how the feathers on your arm hurt when you pull them, I can feel my fingers touch them!"

Aron gave me a blank stare. "Nuh uh, no way. This must be some sort of elaborate prank you pulled on me. There is no way that you got stabbed then healed that quick. Heck, there is no way that this should BE HAPPENING RIGHT NOW!"

"I know this is creepy and sketchy as hell, but you've got to belie-" I tried to hold onto my sister's hands when I noticed something on my wrist. A sword was inked into my skin on the exact same place where my sister had her sun symbol. It was as simple as hers and approximately the same size. I spit on my wrist and tried to rub off the mark. No dice, it didn't come off. I look to Aron for her response but I saw she was pissed. All that was happening right now must be making my sister flip. She stepped closer to me and had her fists clench as she took in a deep breathe. 

"Okayokayokay, listen." I said, "Let's do a roll call kind of thing. Organize our thoughts before we go ballistic. Question number one: Where are we?" Aron seems to take a step back and force herself to calm down. Thank god, I did not wanna die again today. I check my pockets and find my phone and wallet intact. Yes! Opening my phone screen I notice that it was still today, a Monday, and it was 7:50 AM. I pull up Google maps.

"It's 7:50 so we haven't had a huge memory lapse. This means we should be close to our neighborhood! C'mon, data, of all times why do you have to be so shitty!" I refresh the app and turn on location services. A few seconds pass and I finally connect to a satellite or something cause I've got our coordinates. Sis leans in to look as I scroll out. Arcadia? The fuck?

"WE'RE IN CALIFORNIA!!!" Screams my sister. "HOW DID YOU TRAP US IN CALIFORNIA? AND ARCADIA? LIKE THE FREAKING TV SHOW? WHAT KIND OF SICK PRANK IS THIS CHARLEY? JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE OBSESSED WITH THAT SHOW DOESNT MEAN YOU CAN KIDNAP ME PROBABLY DRUG ME GIVE ME A TATTOO AND TAKE A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA! I SHOULD KI-"

"Dude please don't kill me, I SWEAR it wasn't me! All I know is our memory is fucked up and Google says we're in Cali. Maybe the satellites are screwed up and gave us the wrong map?" I back away from her as she marches closer to me. Now out from under the bridge, I could feel how warm the sun was despite the warmth of the morning. She lunges forward and grabs my shirt and pulls me to her, which would have been funny considering how tall I was compared to her but I had only one thing on my mind, and that was surviving the wrath of my sis.

"I don't care what Google says. The only thing that you should be caring about is how to get me out of this mess before I murder you!" Dude, let me tell ya, I was about to fucking book it. Aron may be sweet and charming most of the time but goddamn when she's pissed with me, you would be stupid not to get out of the crossfire. Luckily I was saved by the bell. Well, more like a fucking glowing scroll appearing out of nowhere and hitting Aron in the face. She let go of me cradling her nose.

"Yo, who freaking threw this at me?!" My sister asked in a nasally voice. While she was trying to see if her nose broke, I picked up the scroll to inspect it.

"To Aron Hunter and Charley Knight? Dafuq?" I open the scroll which was bound with a wax seal, not unlike those letters you see in written in medieval times. On the wax was a symbol very similar to the ones we had on our wrists but more elegant and detailed, a sword was pointed downward in front of a sun.

"Hunter and Knight? Are they talking about us; these aren't our surnames?" My sister asked blinking a few tears from her eyes, getting hit in the face with a scroll isn't exactly painless.

"I dunno. Let's just read it. 'To Aron Hunter and Charley Knight. Welcome to Arcadia Oaks! In this world, you will be known as the twins Aron Hunter and Charley Knight. All information regarding your personal information such as your new government papers, birthdate, family names, and other details are provided upon request. In your bags, you will have everything you need to start out your quest: Protect Arcadia. You are expected to start attending Arcadia Oaks High starting today and all materials needed for the school year are provided in your bags. In fact, everything you will need now and in the future will be accessible through your backpacks. Your new address is 1413 Huntington Drive. Only let allies enter your new home. Have fun and don't die! P.S. Text or call our toll free number for any guidance at 801-420-6969'- Okay this HAS to be a joke."

As soon as I had uttered those words, letters seemed to appear out of thin air and etch themselves onto the scroll, emitting a bright light. Once the light had faded, we saw a new message.

"'P.P.S. This is not a joke.' Alright, we're definitely hallucinating or something because there is no way in hell that we died, lived, got teleported to California, found a magic scroll who tells us we need to protect Arcadia, which I may add is a real town in the world and not just the town in Trollhunters. I see you, Charley, over there smiling like an idiot, we are NOT in a Tv show and I swear if you even say that out loud I'm gonna kill you."

"We're in Trollhunters!" I said hugging myself and probably smiling like an idiot. I close the scroll and begin rummaging in my bag pulling out a random assortment of school supplies and extra clothes. Way more stuff than I thought could fit in my backpack, almost like it was magic...

"Great now I have to kill you. Listen, let's just think rationally and focus on getting back home. Maybe we coul-" Aron couldn't finish her sentence because a shadow fell over us and something fast came speeding towards us. We heard the sound of squeaky bike wheels some kid did a sick jump from the top of the canal. Ordinarily I'd be hella impressed at how good that kid's balance was, but unfortunately, we were directly in his path. Great, death by bicycle two time in a day.

"FUCK!" My sister and I scream as we dodge to the side. My sister may be small next to me but she was strong. She grabbed me and pulled me back to the bridge as the kid struggled to veer around us and brake. We groaned on the ground and with Aron on top of me, it felt like I was dying again.

"Oh my god, are you two okay! Tobes hurry I think I just killed someone!"

"WhaAAAAA....." Another kid, apparently this 'Tobes' yelled as he sped down the canal slope and went up the other side. Despite his impressive speed, he did not make it up all the way to the other side and went backward, falling on the ground in a crumpled heap at the bottom of the canal. 

"Nah, we're good dude. Just a few fractured ribs." I gasped out from under Aron as she pushed herself up off of me. She gave me her hand and helped me up. Dusting ourselves off we look over to the pair of bikers. One was a slender boy in a blue sweater thing who was the one who nearly hit us. His color seemed to be blue because between his jacket, shoes, and eyes, he was practically covered in blue. The other was a stout kid, on the heavy side. He was wearing a red sweater best on top of a garish yellow dress shirt. His mouth was full of braces as well as dirt cause he took a sick tumble onto the ground. All in all, just a pair or normal looking teens. Except they weren't normal cause they were fictional characters from a Tv show.

"Holy shit Jim!"

"Uh, how di-"

"JIMINY CRICKET. She was going to say Jiminy Cricket!" My sister saved me. "Yeah, Holy Jiminy Cricket dude, you nearly killed us! What's got you in a hurry?" Thank god for my sister and how calm and collected she is. She has again saved me from another awkward situation. Man, I can trust her to not make a scene, usually...

"Do I know y-" Jim Lake began to say when he was interrupted by a booming voice.

"JAMES... LAKE." We all turn to a pile of rubble on the other side of the bridge, except for Toby, he was still untangling himself from his bike and the ground. Jim drops his bike and undoes the clasp on his helmet and walks over to the broken remains of Kanjigar the Courageous. Rip in peace, big guy.

"Hey! Hey, Tobes. Did you guys hear that voice?" Jim asked as he leaned over the pile of rubble.

"Yeah, or else I'm hallucinating and need to up my meds. Lmao. Psst, Aron, wtf? We're in the first episode!" I nudge Aron over to the rocks as Toby comes over to investigate. My sister and I stare wide-eyed at each other trying to process what's going on. Are we in a simulation? Was the Internet right for once?

"What voice?" Toby asks before the amulet talks again.

"James Lake." 

"Oh shit!" I yell. Jim, Toby, and Aron yelp and fall back to the ground before Jim perks up again.

"That! That pile of rocks knows my name." Jim exclaims as he crawls closer to the rocks.

"It's a pile of K-spar. Minerals don't talk. There's gotta be a walkie-talkie in here or something. And who are you guys? You aren't pranking us are you?" Toby sifts through the rocks and points an accusatory finger at us.

"Hell no, lil dude. We nearly got run over by James and his sick tricks. We just moved in any way so it's not like we're out to get ya." I quickly explain and sharply jab Aron's arm. 

"Y-yeah, just moved in! We're on Huntington Drive." We try to look past Toby and try and catch a glimpse of the amulet.

"Oh, you guys are moving in on the same cul-de-sac Jimbo and I live on! Nice to meet you, new neighbors! What are your names?" Toby asks us as he resumes helping Jim look through the rubble.

"I'm Charley and this is Aron. Nice to meet you guys too....heh." My sister rolls her eyes at how awkward I was. I shifted nervously even though Toby and Jim's attention was on the rocks. 

"Nerd." Aron whispers in my direction. In retaliation, I stomped on her feet before we were interrupted by Jim picking up the Amulet of Daylight.

"Huh. It looks like an amulet." Stated Jim as he looked upon the amulet. Strange markings of what I could assume were Troll speech were imprinted on the outer rim. The glowing blue crystal on the inside pulsated with color and was so vivid in real life. Well, sort of real life. 

"Who's doing this? Come out now!" Toby yelled towards the bridge, his voice echoing along the walls of the canal.

"Hello. I'm listening." Jim quietly says as he and Toby get closer to the amulet. My sister and I also find ourselves enthralled by the amulet despite knowing what happens next. 

BRRRIINNNGGGGG

We all jump back, Jim and Toby screaming after hearing the school bell, and move out of the way as the boys run towards their bikes.

"Ugh, final bell! We're so late our kids are gonna have detention."

"Come on. Come on, Tobes. We can still make it. Nice meeting you guys and sorry for almost killing you!"

"I'm right behind. Maybe we'll see you later. Bye Aron and Charley!" The boys leap onto their bikes and head in the direction of the bell. Awestruck, we could only wave goodbye as they left. I turn towards Aron.

"Is this really happening?" I ask.

"You should have layed off the energy drinks."

"Hahaha! Hilarious, lil sis. You're such a comedian. Hey, aren't we forgetting something?"

"Omg. The scroll said we were starting school today at Arcadia Oaks High!" Aron said running to her bike and picking up her backpack and all the stuff I threw onto the ground. "Crap, these feathers are getting in the way! They're snagging on a bunch of crap. I guess I have to wear my jacket even though it's hot out... Come on Charley, get it together! Let's go." My sister snapped at me. I grab my bag and walk over to the bikes hopping on and fiddling with the clasps on my helmet. I have already died in one bike related accident, I don't need to make it another. 

Was all of this real? We were really in Trollhunters. This is all crazy, what are we getting ourselves into? We push in our kickstands and follow the sounds of high school. Only one phrase could describe how I was feeling right now.

"Fuck me, dude. KMS."

********

A figure watched from the storm grates in the side of the canal, his large friend behind him further in the sewers. The figure's six eyes open as he watched the two pairs ride off to the school. Emerging from the safe shadows, he put his four hands on the grates and leaned in to get a better look.

"It chose a human? And who were those strange teenagers who had appeared out of nowhere?"


	3. Chapter 3: The Mitochondria is the Powerhouse of the Cell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The twins are back in school and try to ground themselves in this new world.

We were only five minutes late to school despite our hesitance to ride on our bikes near a road. The accident was still fresh in our mind but was nearly overshadowed by the fact we were in a fictional world. Oh, and I was going to repeat sophomore year again. The documents Arcadia Oaks High were sent to enroll us stated we both turned sixteen at the beginning of the school year (apparently we were twins in this world?)and were to be enrolled in 10th-grade classes. Which is both great and shitty cause I'll know most of what they are teaching and can just chill, but I'm also repeating a year. Like, what's gonna happen to all of my credits I earned? Did they transfer or am I gonna have to redo them? Why am I thinking about my educational career when I'm in a fictional world?! Jeez, how does Jim manage to balance his life, it seems so exhausting?

The school cut us some slack considering we were new to the town and let us off with a warning and a lecture about making good first impressions and being punctual with our time. Shoving our schedules into our hands and giving us our late passes, they thrust us into the nearest classroom eager to get rid of us.

Nothing too interesting happened at our new school. We attended the basic classes: Math, Language Arts, Spanish, the usual core classes. The school had only so many kids attending so the student body was smaller than the average high school, this meant most of our classes were with the main trio. Whether this was good or bad, I haven't decided yet. How involved should we invest ourselves into the Trollhunters arc? I understand in this town it would be nearly impossible to NOT get involved with the storyline as Arcadia is the battleground for the whole show, but are we strong enough to join the team? Aron and I are just random teenagers from the "real world", not this fantasy one. I get that the trio is also normal teenagers but they have the luxury of being the main characters in a children's TV show. This is our reality now, do their rules apply or are we outside its sphere of influence and will be subjected to far harsher consequences? Hell, with us here will the plot even follow canon? God, I really need to talk to Aron about this; we need to set some ground rules and discuss the ethics of letting all the bad stuff happen when we can prevent it. Cluster fuck incoming.

I shake my head of all these thoughts before turning my attention back to my laptop. It was history time and you're damn right I'm going to do my best to be the teacher's pet. If I can get into Strickler's weird ass circle of humans he sort of likes and won't murder, the better it's gonna be for me. 

"The Peloponnesian War was actually three wars fought between Athens and Sparta. The first war is known as the Archimidian War. Type that into your search engines. A-R-C-H-I-M-I-D-I-A-N." Strickler walked around the classroom with his hands clasped behind his back. It is still so fucking weird knowing that he's a changeling and is just a random history teacher. Like, is there not any other job that would be more beneficial to the Janus Order than having your head dude be some teacher? Like he's not brainwashing kids he's just chilling? I dunno. Anyway, I get back to the notes I was taking and rush to finish them as I hear Toby and Jim start talking about Claire and the talking amulet. Saving the document, I send Jim a copy with a note: 'heres the notes for class cause apparently a girl is more important than paying attention in class. lol jk, btw strickler at your six. rip.' Jim and Toby have been kind enough to show us around the school, though I suspect they were doing it to make up for almost killing us with their bikes, not that I'm complaining about their help. They seemed pretty excited to have some new kids in the area as Arcadia, from what they told me, is a "very quiet and boring town.' Lmao. Anyway they are pretty nice kids so I'm gonna be helping them out, at least academically, cause again I don't know if we'll survive being in cahoots with the Trollhunters.

"Jim, would you agree?"

"Sir?" Jim turns around towards surprised. Rip in pieces little dude.

"With Herodotus' opinion on his tactics of war, as I've described."

"Oh, uh. Absolutely."

"Excellent. Which tactics, specifically?" Strickle asks as he starts clicking around his fountain pen. Jim looks around before responding.

"The, uh...winning ones?"

The school bell rings signaling the students to get to their next class. Our classmates laugh at Jim's cluelessness, which to be honest, was pretty funny. Stifling a chuckle, I pat Jim on the back giving him a smirk. I grab my backpack and catch up with my sister and Toby who are heading to P.E. 

"So, you guys find anything about the amulet?" I ask readjusting my backpack. "It's pretty fucking weird with its talking 'innit?"

"Nah, I didn't find anything useful. I doubt Jim did either cause he was drooling over Claire the whole time." Toby replied heading to his locker. We exchange our history stuff for our athletics gear. Thank god the magic scroll was right about our backpacks having everything we need. Note: plan for future experiments regarding the magical properties of the backpack. "Anyway, I've been wondering. Why do you two hang around us so much? Like, I don't wanna be rude, it's nice having different company and all, cause usually it's only me and Jimbo, but why? We nearly killed you." Toby asks as he shuts his locker.

"I like to think that there are only two types of people who would run over another with a bike: Enemies or best friends. And I'd rather be best friends than sworn enemies. Plus I doubt you guys need another resident high school bully. It seems like y'all have that covered." I say.

"I guess you're right. Steve is already a handful to deal with. Anyway, see you in class, twins!" Toby yells running off to the boys changing room.

"Bye, Toby!" Aron yells after him. She turns to me then elbows me in the side. "Charley, what the hell are you doing? We haven't decided if we are going to get involved yet! Why are you trying to be friends with them?"

"I'm just being a nice dude! And we both know that no matter what happens, somehow we are gonna get roped into this war bullshit, whether it's gonna be now or at the end of season 3, I don't know for sure. Besides, they need someone to count on. Whether that's with you-know-what business or education. I've already compiled notes for today's classes and I plan on helping them out with it." I tell Aron as we go into the girl's dressing room. Wait, am I forgetting something? Oh shit! The scales and feathers! I pull Aron to an isolated part of the dressing room and put my hand over her mouth before she tries to cuss me out.

"What the heck are you doing Charley?"

"Your feathers! The weird ass fucking feathers on your arm. We're going to P.E. we can't exactly throw on a jacket and call it good!" I pull up her jacket sleeve but see nothing. What the fuck where did they go? I then look at my right leg and see no scales.

"Well, that solves that. Now leave me alone to change!" Aron says pushing me out of the stall.

"Are you not gonna freak out because of this? The you-know-whats are missing!"

"Yeah, so nothing too weird compared to this morning. Just act like something crazy isn't happening for once. We'll figure it out after school." I huff and begin to put on a white tank top and blue shorts as Aron does the same. New note: solve the mystery of the magic rashes.

********

"Ugh, you are so nice to them. Why can't you be nice to me?" She puts putting her long hair into a ponytail.

"Cause you're my lil sis, lil sis." I said ruffling her hair. She attempts a poorly coordinated swing at me as I step back. Smiling I walk out of the dressing room and out onto the gym. " And besides, who else is gonna torment you endlessly?" She stomps out towards me and shoves me backward. Flipping her hair in my face, she walks towards the circle forming around Coach Lawrence and sticks her tongue out at me. Smiling she waves back at me and starts doing her stretches.

P.E. went just as well as I was expecting. Jim did okay despite being a toothpick, Toby failed at nearly every exercise, Aron did well with flexibility but sucked at strength, whilst I sucked with flexibility but was alright with strength. Wow, what a trollhunting team we were going to be! Amazing! We aren't gonna die the first night! HAHA! NO WAY! WHY WOULD YOU THINK THAT!? My attention turns to Toby who is attempting to climb the rope.

"Hang on. Almost there." Toby grunts with effort as he struggles to pull himself up. "So close. So close!"

"Come on, Tobes. You've got this!" Jim cheers from under him. 

"You've got this Toby! Use your legs!" I encouraged with Jim. I see Coach Lawrence come by inspecting the students currently on the rope and gets to Toby as soon as he falls and tangles his leg in the rope. I grimace.

"What is that on my rope?" Coach Lawrence questions as he pulls out his clipboard. Toby groans in pain cause he is literally hanging by his one leg a foot off the ground. " Every student here should be able to climb this rope and ring that bell. I want all of you to be made of iron. Iron! You have got to be kidding me. I don't know what I feel sorry for. You or the rope."

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jim head over to where Claire, Darci, and Shannon are sitting watching a video on their phone. Out of all the times, Jim decides to make a move is when his best friend is in trouble? Alright then. I prepare for the second-hand embarrassment I am definitely gonna get as Jimbo "unleashes his Espanol" on Claire. That poor girl, I feel so sorry for her; Jim is so awkward in Season 1. God, I can practically hear the "Buenas Noches" and the "uh" and "ums" all the way from over here. I help Toby down from the rope while Coach is berating him and share a look with my sister who is facepalming. What are we going to do with these boys?

"Smooth moves, Jimbo. You do know its like 2 in the afternoon, right? You just said "Good Night" to the cute Latina girl in the middle of the day!" I say to Jim as he comes back over to us. He puts his head in his hands realizing his mistake.

"Yeah, real smooth, Jim." My sister says rolling her eyes. "C'mon it's the end of the day and I wanna head home before my head bursts from all this knowledge I learned." Aron walks towards the changing room and waves me over.

"Haha, see ya guys! Meet up by the bike racks? Seems Aron wants to get the hell outta here. Oh and here are our phone numbers in case you need to talk to us. Bye new neighbors!" I hand Jim and Toby our numbers and run to catch up with Aron.

It takes foreverrr for the boys to meet us at the bike rack but when they finally do Toby seems almost proud of himself? Oh, wait I nearly forgot, their encounter with Steve. Jim and Toby get on their bikes and put on their helmets as we speed away towards our houses.

"What's got you so happy Toby?" Aron asked.

"It was so awesome guys! You should have seen how I did that chant. 'Let him out, let him out'. Too bad Jim won't live past Friday, but it was awesome."

"Care to translate for us, Jim?" I ask even though I knew what was happening.

"I sort of stopped Steve from bullying Eli and he challenged me to a fight on Friday."Jim said looking back at us. 

"Jeez, you mean the six-foot-something Steve, the football dude Steve? Rip in pieces buddy, literally! Jk, I'm sure you've got in under control." I joke riding circles around the group.

"Yeah, it's a good thing his mom's a doctor." Toby said as an older looking car in front of us honked in our direction. Dr. Barbara Lake rolled down the window and adjusted her glasses

"Hey boys." Dr. Lake greeted as she put the car in park. She was wearing her usual attire of scrubs as well as her doctor's coat. She looked quizzically at my sister and me.

"Hey, mom."

"Looking sharp, Doctor Lake." Toby said pedaling by.

"Thank you, Toby. So are you." Dr. Lake replied politely.

"Oh! Does it show?" Toby asked before poking his arms as if looking for a dramatic change in his physique.

"You two must be the twins of the family who just moved in next to us. Welcome to the neighborhood! I'm Barbara Lake, Jim's mom, it is so nice to meet some new faces!" Dr. Lake introduced herself to us and shook our hands.

"Nice to meet you too, Dr. Lake!" Aron spoke for the both of us. I nodded in agreement

"If you need anything just come on over to our house and Jim or I can help you. We used to be new in this neighborhood once upon a time so we're happy to help." 

"We really appreciate it, Dr. Lake." I reply.

"Are you going to be out all night?" Jim asked after we were done with the pleasantries. Barbara sighed tiredly.

"Dr. Gilberg is out with bursitis, and Dr. Lenz had a wedding out of town this weekend."

"Okay, well don't' forget to bring your-"

"Dinner. Thank you."

"Right. And try to find an oven to reheat it in instead of nuking. Takes all of the flavor and nutrients away." Jim reminds his mom as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the sticky note with Mr. Strickler's number on it.

"Jim, there must be a million things you'd rather be doing than looking after me."

"Can't think of one." Jim replies as he hastily pockets the number again.

"Love you, honey." Barbara says as she closes the car window and drives off to the hospital.

"Bye, mom." Jim says to the leaving car.

"You mother your mother a lot." Toby observes.

"Yeah, it's really sweet isn't it?" I butt in. "Well see you later guys, contact us if something interesting happens with the amulet!" The two boys go to their respective houses as we stay on our bikes in the middle of the cul-de-sac. I look to Aron concerned as she looks to me. This is the first time we'll enter this house and we don't know what to expect. Considering the circumstances, there might be weird parallel universe parents we have to deal with, or a fucking magical unicorn could be our caretaker. Either way, it was troubling.

"So uh, you ready to go in?" I ask Aron as I fish through the magic backpack. Surprisingly I feel a key where there should have been textbooks and pull it out. Amazed I look to my sister.

"Hell no. But you're probably going to make me go in any way. Rock Paper Scissors who opens the door?" Aron asks as we walk to the garage and push the open button. The garage door opens with a creak and the only things inside are a few miscellaneous boxes, empty shelves, and a random assortment of gardening tools. 

"Fine." I say assuming the Rock Paper Scissors position. One two three. Shit.

"Goddamn it." I grasp the key and shove it in the lock. Click. Okay so far so good. I open the door quickly and look in. It was a typical house with a kitchen, living room, dining room, and an upstairs. The design was minimalistic like the house was one of those model homes you'd see on Tv. The layout was very similar to Jim's house, possibly the same model?

"That was sort of anticlimactic." My sister said surveying the house. "Hmm. Fully stocked fridge and already furnished? Magic? This house wasn't in the show." Aron notes.

"Obviously it's magic, we're in a Tv show and there are trolls running amuck! I prefer not to think about it and just go with the flow. Speaking of going with the flow, I call biggest room!" I yell racing up the stairs. I hear Aron curse behind me she follows behind me. I open the closest door to the stairs. Bathroom, shit. I open the next one and stop in my tracks. Oh. My. God.

"Oof! Why'd you stop? Oh." The door I opened was an exact replica of my room in our original world. All of my books and posters were in their places, as well as the pile of dirty clothes in the corner of my room. Even the bucket my sister filled to try and prank me was there next to my fish tank, the fish inside oblivious to how fucking crazy this was. Everything was the exact same as I left it this morning. Aron gasps and runs to the next door and cries tears of joy as her room is there as well. Although not as messy as mine, her piles of clothes and rubbish were there as she left them.

"This is fucking crazy." I simply state.

"It's a dream come true! My room! My precious room, it's all here!" Aron screams jumping on her bed. I close the door to my room then open it. Close it, then open it. Yep, still there.

"Okay, Aron, come downstairs. Let's just take a moment and do a reality check. This whole situation crazy and we need to think rationally." I go down the stairs and head to the kitchen and look in the pantry for any snacks. I'm so hungry right now I could eat a whole bag of chips. Putting some popcorn in the microwave, I see Aron practically float down the stairs with her laptop and headphones and plop down on the couch. I open some random cupboards and finally find some bowls to put the popcorn in. With everything ready, I sit down next to my sister.

"We need to make a plan."

********


	4. Chapter 4: A Choice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cringe-fest alert. I am so sorry guys. I swear it will get better and less cringey.

Usually, stuff like this is kind of a no-brainer. You get transported to one of your favorite shows by dying, nearly die again at the hands of the main characters, and inherit weird ass magical abilities and a house, and what do you do? Hell yeah, you put yourself in the middle of the plot and self-indulge. Unfortunately, reality will often come and smack you in your stupid, dumb face. 

My sister and I left off sitting in the living room of our newly acquired magical house which happened to have exact copies of our rooms from our original world. Everything we needed to live was in this house, which happened to sit between where the two main characters live, the two main characters in a show about trolls who do untold amounts of property damage. You can begin to see how this might be concerning.

"Okay, this marks the start of the first ever meeting of "What the Hell We're in a TV Show and Don't Know What We're Doing". I will lead today's meeting as we go over-"

"Listen, Charley, I am literally the only one here. We don't have to make this a whole entire thing a bit so just get on with it." My sister rudely interrupts me as she dishes out some popcorn and plugs her laptop in.

"Fine. Firstly we need to set some ground rules and discuss the ethics of involving ourselves in the plot. I propose we just fling ourselves in and go crazy. We already know whats going to happen so even without all the magical help we are getting, we should be fine."

"Normally I would agree with you but this is something we are totally not ready for. Yes, we have magic aid - which might not even work - but this is real life right now. We may be in a children's show and we may be friends with the main characters but this does not guarantee our safety! We've already died once today, nearly died again less than an hour arriving here, and now we're in the middle of a war. And this is only season one! Season one! Two and three are much worse and deadly." 

"Correct, but as we've said, we know whats going to happen and we're friends with the main characters, those of which are hella powerful and probably have plot protection. This is very beneficial to us! Having powerful allies in this world is paramount to our survival and ignoring these opportunities would be stupid." Aron sighs as she closes her laptop and leans forward towards me. She runs her fingers in her hair.

"This may be true, but what do we have? We might not fall under the protection of the plot, we're just some random kids who appeared out of nowhere and have magic skin rashes. The whole magic helpline could be a trick. I dunno, sis, I'm scared." Aron fidgets with her hands as her posture loosens. I frown and sit next to her on the couch. 

"Goodness gracious, who isn't?" I say with a smile on my face. Aron jabs me with her elbow and gives me a small smile. 

"Screw off, 'Blinky'. Thanks for the reassurance anyway."

"How about this, we'll do what we feel is best. If you don't want to get involved you don't have to but you know I'm gonna get hella invested in the plot with our without you. Let's make a promise: We'll be by each others' side no matter what." I hold out my pinky waiting for her response. She holds up her pinky and interlocks it with mine.

"Till the end, I guess..."

"That's the spirit! C'mon let us go watch something and unwind." I get up off the couch. "This is too serious for me anyway."

"You're the one who held the meeting!" Aron chastises me. She opens back up her laptop and finds a more comfortable position to sit.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever dude." I say picking up the Tv remote and sitting down next to Aron. I start switching channels and find nothing interesting. Groaning in annoyance I grab my backpack and start to do my homework when the bag falls from the table. Ugh, I get off the couch and reach down to pick it back up when I see a few items have rolled out of the backpack. I gather them up and set them on the coffee table.

"Hey, check this out, sis." I say nudging Aron who looks to the table.

"The heck, where did you get this?"

"Fell out of the backpack. The magic backpack which gives us magic things." I say picking up the items. One was a piece of white chalk embedded in a polished piece of wood with strange runes written on the side. The other was an elaborately decorated stick adjourned with small gemstones and tiny runes. The last piece was a small dagger crafted from a dark metal, the grip was made out of thick canvas strips.

"Woah." Aron and I breathe out. We were about to closer inspect the items when the magic backpack spit something else back out. It was the scroll that was thrown at us when we entered this world and it seemed to have something else written on it. I pick it up and begin reading it.

" It says 'There are many things that you do not know about this world. More than just trolls lurk beneath the feet of man. Provided to you are three items which will aid you in your quest. Your weapons and the key to all of Arcadia. Use them wisely. There is no going back. Goodluck my dragon and Phoenix. My champions.' Again, dafuq?" I set down the scroll and pick up the piece of chalk. "Okay so I dunno about me but the dragon and phoenix part is a little confusing to me. I presume they're talking about us but we're humans so I'm not sure? And what the hell is this stick? I get the dagger as a weapon but a stick? And how is a piece of chalk a key? Is that the other weapon?"

"Not sure, but I think the stick is a wand." Aron said as she reached for the 'wand'. Grabbing it in her hand she tries to twirl it in her fingers but fails and drops it. Wincing, she picks it back up when a bright light erupts from the wand. Bright orange then fading to white it blinds us for a few moments. Rubbing my eyes and praying that I won't go blind this early in life, the light disappears and I see Aron's sun mark glowing then fading to its original black color. A ripple seemed to move through her body and I saw her changing. The feathers on her forearms were back and littered her shoulders and cheeks akin to freckles. Her nails sharpened and seemed birdlike with small scales on knuckles. 

"Holy SHIT DUDE!" I scream jumping back and knocking over all the stuff that was on the table.

"Omgomgomg DUDE HELP ME WHATS GOING ON?!" Aron panics as she pulls at her feathers on her arms and face. "THE FREAKING FEATHERS ARE BACK AAA!"

"AAAAAAAAAA!" We both scream in unison. I grab the dagger in panic and wince at the second bright light to blind my eyes today. An itching spread from the dagger and ran up my arms to the top of my head. Four areas at the top of my head began to tingle as I saw scales sprout from inside my forearms, my nails growing longer and sharper. I fall back dropping the dagger in a daze. 

"CHARLEY WHAT THE HELL!?" My sister screams at me. Ugh, my head. I rub my head to try and ease myself from my upcoming headache when my clawed hand caught on something. Something bony. No. Way. I rush upstairs to the bathroom and practically throw open the door and turn on the lights, ignoring my sister's frantic yelling. Oh. My. God.

"I'M A FUCKING DRAGON WHAT THE FUUU-"

"Ssshhh! Just calm down and think this through and stop panicking. STOP PANICKING!!!" Aron says before we slump to the bathroom floor. We look each other over. Aron was practically covered in fluffy feathers most of which were on her arms and intertwined in her hair. A few sprinkled her face and shoulders. They were a fiery orange with some small tufts that were different shades of gray, exactly like how they were this morning.

"Uh, I guess we know what 'good luck my dragon and phoenix' means. hahahhahahaha." I chuckle nervously picking at the skin by my horns. Two straight nubs were sprouted where my forehead meets my hairline, another pair was further back by the temples of my head and were curvier. The front horns were no more than two inches big and the larger ones no longer than my pointer finger. If this crazy shit wasn't happening to me I would think they were cute, but alas, here we are.

"Oh crap, Charley, what have we gotten ourselves into this time? First, we died this morning and now we look like freaks!" 

"I'm a dragon."

"I told you we shouldn't have gotten involved, now we're a different species? Half species? What are we anymore?"

"I'm a dragon."

"YES! I know. This has been established. You're a dragon and I'm a phoenix. Gosh, now I'm playing into this sick fantasy. Chill, Aron, it's cool. Just a vivid hallucination." Aron tells herself. I stand up and inspect myself in the mirror and smooshing my face. My canines were a little sharper and stuck out of my mouth a little bit. Smiling I turn back to my sister and grab her shoulders.

"Isn't this amazing!"

"No, it isn't! This is something we don't know about! Before we had all the answers, what is going to happen to who, when to get the heck outta dodge when things become too crazy. Now we've got this new problem! We can't go out like this what are we gonna say to Jim and Toby? 'Whoops sorry dudes, can't hang out with you, WE'VE TRANSFO-'".

BANG

A crash sounded outside. Oh god, what the fuck? I clamp my hand on Aron's face and pull the bathroom door closed. 

"See, this is what I'm talking about! " Aron says pulling my hand away from her face. "We are way in over our heads!"

"Ssh!" I whisper back. I head over to the bathroom window and move the curtains to the side to look out. Nothing. Just the woods behind our houses. I catch a quick movement to the right of our yard, towards Jim's house.

"We've established we are in episode 1, right?" I ask Aron.

"Obviously, did you forget we met Jim and Toby today, the two boys from a TV show?! And why are you whispering?"

"Don't sass me! But do you remember what happens in it?" I ask heading out the bathroom door and crouching down the stairs.

"How could I not?" Aron whispered taking the hint. "Jim finds the amulet, goes to school, heads home, and is introduced to Aaarrrgghh and Blin- oh no. That's happening right now isn't it?"

I stay quiet watching the two large figures climb the fence to Jim's backyard and as they presumably enter the basement. I made sure they were out of sight before I turn to Aron.

"Okay, we need a plan. Blinky and Aaarrrgghh are at Jim's house right now. I already have a stupid plan but I want your input."

"Can't you remember anything in the past 5 minutes?! We don't look human anymore, in fact, we sorta look like weird monsters with sharp teeth and nails. How do you think Blinky and Arrrgghh would react when we come prancing in the front door. How would Jim react?" Aron explained to me. 

"Good point. New plan: Let's just take a quick peek; in and out. Here grab some clothes and a jacket." I run back upstairs and opened my closet which was full of my clothes. Go figure. I pull out a beanie, long-sleeved jacket, and some jeans.

"No. No way, I do not want to be part of this plan. As you've said, it's stupid and dumb. You're gonna get us killed!"

"Listen that doesn't matter right now. For all we know, if we die again we'll live the day over again or get transported into an anime or something. We look badass so let's just do this shit and fling ourselves into the fun!" I open the back door and look left and right before turning to look back at Aron. "Either way I'm gonna head over there and take a look, with or without you."

Aron looked conflicted. Minutes ago she had grown feathers all over her body by touching a magic wand. Now her crazy sister wants to go spy on Jim and some trolls. She was worried about her sister's sanity and well-being. Gosh, her sister was so stupid sometimes.

"Fine, I'll go. Let me get ready."

"Hell no. I'll meet you there." I run out the door before Aron could stop me. Climbing the fences I enter Jim's yard and look for a window to the basement. Bingo. I crawl over to the small window and squint to see inside. Shit, I forgot Jim's house has the weird cloudy windows on the basement. Despite my lack of visibility, I could clearly hear Jim's frantic screams as his future mentors were trying to introduce themselves to him. I heard a thump and could barely make out Jim's figure fainting on the ground.

"Damn, missed it."

Two heads and four pairs of eyes swivel around to look at me. Fuck.

"Quick, Arrrgghh, we've been spotted. Catch that eavesdropper!" Blinky pointed in my direction.

I'm not gonna lie to you. I'm going to be real right now. I fucking ran as fast as my legs could carry me back to the house. I fucked up, badly, and I was scared shitless. I blew it and not only are we going to get caught by Blinky and Aaarrrgghh, Aron was gonna kill me herself. I spot her figure jogging towards to me as I pick her up and book it to the house. She gives a yelp of surprise at my sudden increase in strength and grasps my clothes to steady herself. I boost my sister over the fences and push her inside the house closing all the curtains and locking all the doors.

"Whats going on?"

"I fucked up bad dude. They saw me and they're gonna get me. Shit shit shit." We then turned to the sound of a door opening. 

"How the shit, I locked the doors?!" I grab Aron and run upstairs when I hear Blinky yelling after us.

"Halt, you two! Stop right there foul beasts, we've caught you red-handed!"

"Runrunrunrun!" I chanted under my breathe. Before I knew it my legs were pulled out from under me and both me and Aron were dangling upside down.

"Now, what manner of beast are you?" I hear Blinky ask poking at us. "And what are you doing snooping around Master Jim's residence? Answer me, creature!"

"Smells weird." Aaarrrgh states after sniffing at us.

"Indeed, my good friend, they are quite peculiar. Now speak!"

"Okay dude we'll tell you everything! We're from another universe and we used to be humans but now we're like these weird creatures and I don't know whats going on cause there's like magic shit everywhere and everything is fucked up and scary like what the-"

"What the heck are you doing, Charley!" Aron yells at me.

"Listen, dude, I don't know about you but I'm scared shitless and who else would know about magic stuff than magic dudes. Also, they are like twice our size and I don't want to die. Please don't kill me." I close my eyes waiting to die. Even though in my rational mind I know they probably won't kill us but it's one thing to believe it when you've got some trolls in your house, one of which is almost as large as a car. And carrying you upside down.

"Hmm, another universe you say? You aren't lying to me are you?" Blinky asks putting one of his four arms on his chin in a speculating manner.

"Hell no dude. I swear to god its true just let us down and we'll explain everything." I plead.

Blinky points to the ground to which Aaarrrgghh gently drops us to the floor. I rub my head to ease the tingling from being held upside down.

"First things first, explain why you were eavesdropping on us at Master Jim's house." Blinky asks crossing his arms. 

"We know him from school. When we arrived here he nearly ran us over with his bike and found an amulet with him and now we're friends or something and when we saw you guys jumping his fence so w-" Aron began to explain before she was interrupted by Blinky.

"Wait a moment, you said you found the amulet with Master Jim? You were the other two humans at the canal! But how did you turn into this...thing?" Blinky asks before poking at our torsos and grabbing at our arms. "I have never seen a creature like this before. Oh, what's this on your arms?" He points to the two marks on our right arms. Even though the top part of our forearms was completely covered in scales or feathers, underneath was human flesh which showed the tattoos.

"We're not sure." Aron began. "They appeared when we arrived and we don't know what they are supposed to mean."

"Hmm, they look quite familiar. Perhaps I've seen them in a book somewhere... This will require further investigation. Onto my final question before we make our leave, you aren't intending to hurt Master Jim, are you?" Blinky asks us squinting his eyes. Aaarrrgghh seems to straighten his posture as if preparing for a wrong answer. God, Aron was right, we should not have gotten involved.

"As we've told you before, we're friends. We have no intention of hurting him. We plan on helping him in whatever magical crap he's got himself into. I presume it's about the talking amulet?" Aron explains.

"Correct. He is destined to wield a very important mantle to Troll-kind. Does Master Jim happen to know of your origins?"

"No, he doesn't. Fuuuck we probably should tell him soon if we're stuck looking like this." I say gesturing to myself.

"If I find anything about your species I will help any way I can, only because you are friends of the new Trollhunter. However, one wrong move and we won't hesitate to stop you. Are we clear?"

"C-crystal." I stutter out. As if satisfied with his answer he motions for Aaarrrgghh to follow him out the back door. Aaarrrggh looks back and waves before bounding over the fence, pulling Blinky over with him. I look to Aron with wide eyes.

"You were right. We never should of gotten involved."

"Told you."

********


	5. Chapter 5: Stealth Mission

The night was quiet. Waltolemew Stricklander parked his car next to the bridge, wary of the passing cars. Between balancing his responsibilities as the head of the Janus Order and grading his students' papers, it had already been a long night. Now he learns that one of his favorite students holds the Amulet of Daylight? Troubling. Carefully traversing the slope of the canal, he heads towards the rubble of the previous Trollhunter, Kanjigar the Courageous. Sifting through the remains he picks up the stone that would have held the amulet.

"It's been taken." A large troll sauntered towards the changeling, the same troll that had killed Kanjigar. His hulking figure easily dwarfed the teacher.

"You failed. You let it go. Your father will be displeased." The teacher jeered. Snarling in rage Bular stoops down to Stricklander's height.

"Whoever holds the Amulet of Merlin, I shall destroy him, just as I have done to every single one of them." Bular promises.

"Worry not, you brute. I know where to find it. I believe the amulet has found its champion." Tossing the rock onto the pile, his eyes glow a yellow as he heads back to his car, but stops before a stain.

"Hmm. What's this?" Stricklander eyes the red puddle on the floor. Bular crouches to the ground and inspects the stain. He sniffs it before his eyes widen in shock.

"Blood. Dragon's blood." With a smirk and murderous glint in his eye, he walks towards his hideout for the night where he will make plans to capture this trophy. Bular had already killed many creatures in his time but a dragon was something unique, something he had yet to hunt. 

"A dragon in Arcadia?" Stricklander mumbles to himself sliding his finger through the puddle. Definitely blood he thinks wiping off his finger. This was troubling. Dragons had not been seen for millennia and there was one here in the town housing the Killahead Bridge? With a sigh, the teacher gets up and walks to his car. It was going to be a long night. A long night indeed.

********

It took a while to get to sleep. Between the sharp nails and horns snagging on my sheets getting, a few hours of sleep was nearly impossible. Luckily, it seemed whatever sick god put us in this situation felt pity or something cause by the time it was 4 AM we finally got some rest. Originally we planned to get up and go to school but unfortunately, we hadn't changed back to our human form, combine that with the fact we slept like twelve hours straight we were definitely calling it a sick day.

We woke up around 5 pm and made something to eat. We ate in silence pondering the events of the previous night. To say we had some questions was an understatement. Our whole world had changed, literally and figuratively. We were now fully invested in the events of Trollhunters whether we previously wanted to or not. We were also threatened by Blinky which was hella weird and concerning.

Our phones had some missed calls from Jim as well as some texts. Fuuuu, I forgot about the amulet shit happening.

"So...Uh, how are we gonna break it to Jim and Toby that we are abominations? You know, just a thought before we go gallivanting around town with the Trollhunter and a bunch of trolls looking like we are now" Aron nonchalantly asks. Well, as nonchalantly as you can eating cereal as a phoenix human thing.

"Ugh, I don't even want to think about it! This is a complete shitshow. It's all fucked to hell! It would have been easier dying and chilling with a bunch of your relatives who you've never heard of before in the afterlife." I say slouching in my chair. I blow a stray piece of hair out of my face and grab our now empty bowls to put them in the sink. "We are so not ready for this. I can't do anything with these gnarly claws! Your feathers get on everything! I'm already so tired..."

"I'm with ya, sis. Let's just head over to Jim's and get the whole 'what's up we're monsters' out of the way. I can already see Blinky and Aaarrrgghh hopping the fence." With a sigh, we grab our jackets and beanies and head out to Jim's back door. In the windows we pass, we can already see Jim donning his armor in front of Toby. Well here goes nothing. 

"Hey, guys. Ready to introduce yourselves?" I greet Blinky and Aaarrrgghh. Surprised that we were here they turn to us.

"Oh, good evening! We were just about to properly introduce ourselves to Master Jim. What are you two doing here?"

"We thought we might as well freak out Jim with you since he doesn't know we're a phoenix and a dragon. Considering the circumstances, we hope he'll just take in in stride."

"Ah yes, I knew you two looked familiar. A dragon and a phoenix in this day and age, who would have thought? And those marks on your arms are quite interesting. We'll talk about you later; time is of the essence!" Blinky turns to the door and knocks on Jim's back door. Even from out here we could hear Toby freaking out.

"Hahaha! Master Jim!" Blinky greets entering the Lake household. Rolling my eyes I watch the scene unfold. Toby freaks out and tries calling Animal Control, Aaarrrgghh getting stuck in the doorway then falling on the floor. I've seen this act out so many times before but seeing it in real life is quite interesting, to say the least. With the doorway clear, Aron and I head in.

"You told your stout little friend about us?" Blinky asks gesturing towards Toby.

"To be fair, Blinky, you sorta just walked in all willy-nilly with no regard if there were anyone else in the house. Completely your fault."

"Augh! What the heck now there are lizard people?!"

"Toby it's me, Charley." I dead-pan. 

"What happened to your face? And Aron. Guys, what's going on?" Jim asks surprised at our appearance.

"Long story short, magic."

"Wha-"

"Master Jim, we trolls have gone to great lengths to keep our existence a secret from your kind, lest there be panic." Blinky tries to explain the situation to Jim as Toby struggles in Aaarrrgghhs grasp. Screaming he wields a metal soup spoon in front of him.

"Like that."

"Again, Blinks, entirely your fault he knows. Hell, even we saw you guys and we were just messing around our house." I say crossing my arms. Jim goes over to consol Toby who is still holding on to that spoon like his life depends on it. 

"It's alright, Tobes." Jim reassures Toby. "This is my best friend, Toby D."

"He has like 800 eyes. We're going to die." Toby mumbles swinging around the spoon like a maniac. I snort. Been there done that.

"Hardly. Your friend is the Trollhunter. His noble obligation is protective."

"Like, protecting? You mean like a superhero? Oh, can I be his sidekick? With a cool superhero name like Deathblade or Snipersnake?" Toby instantly calms down eager to be a superhero. Man, I'm still surprised he took the whole 'Trolls are real and your newest friends are mythical creatures' well. 

"Just wait. Who would I be protecting?" Jim asks the trolls.

"Us." Aaarrrgghh responds pointing to himself.

"And mankind. From bad trolls. As well as goblins, gruesomes, and the occasional rogue gnome." Blinky clarifies. Toby clanks the spoon against Blinky's skin surprised at how it's actually made of stone. Nearing the eyes of the poor trolls, Blinky has enough.

"Do you mind?" Toby drops the spoon. " The mantle of Trollhunter is a sacred responsibility, one which has never been passed to a human before. This is a momentous occasion." Blinky smiles in an attempt to comfort the shaken Jim. It obviously fails. Poor Jim and Toby, all they had to worry about up until now was passing school and social anxiety but look at my boys now. A loud car horn sounds and makes everyone jump in surprise. Fuck, Jim's mom is here!

"Oh, it's my mother! Upstairs quick!" I grab Aron's arm and book it up the stairs vaguely hearing Aaarrrgghh question what mother means and him fixing the staircase-pole-thingy he broke. Ushering us into the bathroom, Jim slams the door closed just in time for his mother to walk through the front door, unfortunately, the loud sound reverberates through the house alerting Barbara downstairs.

"Jim? It's me." Barbara calls up. All of us look nervously at each other and then to Jim who is freaking out.

"She's not supposed to be home until midnight." Jim whirls around with worry in his eyes. Aaarrrgghh seemingly unconcerned about this whole ordeal takes a long sniff of Toby creating an impressive amount of air flow in the small bathroom. 

"Mmm. You smell like cat."

"My nana has a Siamese."

"Tasty." Aaarrrgghh responds eliciting an expression of "holy shit what the fuck" from both Aron and Toby. Our attention is brought back to Jim's mother as she calls to Jim again.

"I forgot my phone. Are you okay in there?" Trolls, humans, dragon, and Phoenix look to each other for some sort of fix-all for this dilemma. I inch towards the bathroom window and slowly inch it open as a last minute escape route in case things go wrong.

"Um, fine. I mean, my stomach's a little, uh..." Jim tries to come up with an excuse for his mother when Toby grabs the toilet brush and begins just fucking, slamming it into the toilet. The subsequent sounds both gross-out Jim's mom and my sister and me. Jim gestures to Tobes to stop embarrassing him. Both Aron and I cringe as we receive a heavy blow of second-hand embarrassment.

"Uh, you know, I might have a food poisoning situation."

"Honey, I'll get you some medicine, okay?" All of us hear the receding footsteps of Barabara as Jim exhales a breath of relief before the Amulet pulses with its blue light.

"Okay, what's going on here?" Jim asks gesturing to the amulet. Toby and I walk over to inspect the amulet which is still shining its blue glow. Damn, that's one shiny amulet.

"The amulet reacts to your emotional state. You appear to be in some distress." Blinky answers as Toby turns off the light to truly see how bright this light is. 

"You think." Jim and I simultaneously say. I laugh before poking the amulet.

"Jinx, Jim, you owe me a soda." I smirk at Jim as he rolls his eyes. We both look toward Aaarrrgghh as he fiddles with the light switch and plunges the room into darkness, then light over and over again.

"I have another question," Toby says.

"Speak, Theodore." Blinky replies, ready to answer Toby's question.

"It's Toby, actually. Or Tobias," Toby clarifies. "If Jim's the first human Trollhunter, like you said, then who or what was the Trollhunter before him?"

"The glorious mantle has been passed from troll to troll for hundreds of years."

"So, the previous Trollhunter, what, retired?" Jim asks Blinky. Maybe he could retire early? Lmao, nope. Poor Jimbo.

"Was felled." Aaarrrgghh remarks sadly.

"Felled?"

"Mean killed."

"Turned to stone and smashed. Kanjigar the Courageous was his name. Brutally slain by a ruthless troll named Bular." Blinky says further illuminating how serious this whole Trollhunting business was. One thing vastly different that I have been noticing ever since entering this world is that its a lot easier to pick up on the atmosphere. Distress and worry ran rampant in this small, cramped bathroom and I could feel waves of anxiety rolling off of Jim.

"Don't worry, dude." Toby places his hand on Jim's shoulder. "This Bular guy probably just got lucky."

"Yeah, dude, nothing to worry about! Hahaha..." My sister says in an attempt to both reassure Jim and herself. I wrap my arm around her and send her a worried glance. 

"The evidence does not suggest that. Bular is a formidable opponent." Shut the fuck up Blinky!

"Then the other guy, he was just off his game or something, right?" Jim asks. My poor, sweet boy.

"Doubtful. Kanjigar was perhaps the most alert and able of all the Trollhunters." Blinky says.

"But not the best, I'm betting." My poor boy asks. 

"Oh, the very best, Many songs and sagas have been written about him." The boys and we cast worried glances at each other before Toby takes the lead in the conversation.

"Uh, I think what my friend here is a little worried about is, if this-

"Bular."

"Yeah, I got it. If Bular could defeat Kanjigar-"

"Smash to pieces." Aaarrrgghh says sucking on the toilet brush with a grin on his face. Jim slumps to the floor with a groan, his hands on his head. I walk over to him and sit on the ground next to him and put my arm around him. Thankfully he didn't freak out because of my scaly ass arms, he probably is too worried about, you know, DYING.

"Then what's going to happen to Jim?" By this point, Jim looks ready for a 12-hour nap and 12 grams of anti-anxiety meds.

"A most appropriate, if troubling, query, Tom." Toby makes a face at Blinky. "Tobias. Of course, we would never expect Master Jim to engage in battle without the proper training. Not at all." Blinky reassures us.

"See? Nothing to worry about. How long does the training normally take?" I suck in a breath as I brace for the answer. Again, poor, poor, Jim. Blinky counts on his fingers, using all four of his arms.

"Oh... Decades." The troll replied.

"And... how long do I have?" Jim timidly asks.

"A day or two." Blinky approximates. Aaarrrgghh does the give-or-take motion with his hand.

"Fuuuuuuck." I groan alongside Jim as he facepalms. We were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Jim, I have medicine and ginger ale. Come on out." Orders Barbara.

"I'm fine. Really."

"I'm a doctor. I'm going to treat my own son."

"I just need a little privacy." Jim says before ushering us to hide. Blinky, Aaarrrgghh, Toby, and Aron jump into the bathtub while I shove myself in the area behind the door.

"You're worrying me. Oh." Barbara groans as she wipes off the ginger ale that was spilled, conveniently allowing Jim to de-armor. "I'm coming in."

"Ooh! See? All good." Jim chuckles nervously as he leaves the bathroom. I stop myself from cursing as my two front horn nubs get slammed by the door. I heard Barbara mutter something before leaving. As I exhaled in relief, I could hear Aaarrrgghh inhale deeply.

"Stop sniffing me, giant troll dude!" I heard Toby whisper.

"Smell like cat." Aaarrrgghh states before sniffing again.

"Shut up." I heard Aron hiss in annoyance. "We're gonna get found out."

********

Dr. Lake leaves in her car and we all sigh in relief as we walk down the stairs. Aron cracks her back and glares at me.

"Next time, you get smushed between the two trolls!" I simply stick my tongue out at her and head to the kitchen. Even though Blinky was like 7 feet tall, he only had a little trouble maneuvering inside Jim's house. Aaarrrgghh, on the other hand, didn't fare so well. Aron and I were both safe in the kitchen and watched the poor troll knock over much of the decor and hit his head on the ceiling.

"Your cave, too small" Stated Aaarrrgghh as he rubbed his head. We headed over to Toby and Jim and began helping them pick up the fallen items. Blinky headed over to where Jim and Aron were picking up the various cookbooks off the ground.

"So, Master Jim, are you ready? We should begin your training immediately."

"Uh, it's a school night."

"Yeah, Senor Uhl has a test coming up next week." Aron remarks grabbing the books from Jim and setting them back on the coffee table.

"I assure, you, the relevance escapes me."

"I'm 15. I have to stay home and, uh, study and stuff. Do homework? I can't be out, you know, trollhunting." With a stack of VHS's in hand, I walk over to where Toby was feeding Aaarrrgghh and toss one in. There goes Moral Weapons: The Reckoning. I worryingly look over to where Jim and Blinky were having their conversation, sighing at Blinky's attempts to get Jim to train.

"Because?"

"Well, the whole 'getting killed by a vicious troll named Bular' might be a dealbreaker." Jim explains to Blinky.

"Definitely something one does not look for in a job." Aron interjects before sitting down on the couch.

"Dude! He eats VHS's!"

"Aw hell yeah, bro, he gobbling them down!" Toby and I yell.

"Dealbreaker?" Blinky asks, confused. For fuck's sake.

"I don't want to die!" Jim yells. Blinky, well, blinks in confusion before laughing.

"Goodness gracious! Who does?" Lmao Blinky. At this point, I don't know if it would be better to off myself before we get to Season 2 or not. Jk. I finish putting up the last VHS and frown at Jim. Sometimes I forget how real this stuff is now. This isn't a Tv show behind a screen, this is real for both us and Jim; the danger of death is even more probable than it was before we came here. I mean we died coming here for crying out loud. I watch Jim sigh as he takes the amulet from his back pocket and hands it to Blinky.

"Maybe you should take this back." Jim sighs. Blinky seems at a loss for what to do. Not many have not accepted the role of Trollhunter when they had a chance to have it.

"The amulet called to you, Master Jim. It chose you. It is your-" Blinky tries to push back the amulet to Jim before he gets cut off.

"Please, don't say 'destiny'." Jim begged.

"-sacred obligation."

"Or that." Jim facepalms. I head to the couch and sit next to Aron. Not much for us to do around here. Thank god the show continues without us. It'd be a pain to actually try and think ahead for what might happen if things drastically changed from canon.

"You cannot refuse it. You cannot give it back. It is yours until you die."

"Holy shit Blinky you can't just fu-"

"And I would like to get a little further past puberty before that happens." Jim says slamming the amulet down into Blinky's hands. Aron jabs me in the ribs again for my interruption.

"Master Jim, you are now responsible for the protection of two worlds, human and troll alike. If you do not keep the balance, evil trolls like Bular will come into yours a wreak havoc." Blinky explains the dire situation.

"You're saying this Bular could hurt people?"

"Like you." Aaarrrgghh points to Jim. I swear these trolls need to stop scaring these sweet kids."

"Not helping!" Blinky snapped to Aaarrrgghh.

"What's he talking about?" Nooo Jim, don't ask!

"With the amulet now in your possession, Bular will seek you out, and you will face him, one way or another." By now, Jim looks pretty worse for wear. I mean, what else would you look like when you find out you're the hero of two worlds and the evil villain has a hit on you?

"Maybe what Jim needs is a little time to process all of this. You know, you laid a lot of heavy stuff on him tonight." Toby persuaded the two trolls. Man, what a good friend Toby is.

"Not to mention we have to figure out the whole, 'my sister and I are mythical creatures' deal."Blinky looks at the four of us the sighs in resignation.

"Fine, fine. We shall return tomorrow then, to begin your training."

"Awesome sauce."

"Woop." Aron sarcastically says pumping her fist in the air. I roll my eyes and head to the house's back door and open it for the two trolls. Toby sticks his head out warily and checks to see if the coast is clear. Both Toby and I toss a few VHS's to Aaarrrggh who snatches them out of the air. Jim is further in the house leaning against a doorway staring at the amulet. I want to console him but Aron pulls me away as we help Aaarrrgghh through the door. Blinky already has it covered. Blinky's speech resonates in the background as we finally push Aaarrrgghh through the door. A few quick goodbyes later and the two trolls were on their way out.

"They're pretty stealthy," Toby remarks. "How's that? I bought you a night."

"A night?" Jim sighs.

"Dude, you're the one who's always talking about wanting adventure and something more. Well, wish granted. Hmm. So, trolls are a thing. Who knew?" 

"And apparently dragons and phoenix." Jim says looking at us. We shuffle our feet nervously under Toby and Jim's gazes. Yeah, we still looked fucking weird. Jim seems to look at the clock on the wall and sighs at how late it was before turning towards us.

"Alright you two, explain."


	6. Chapter 6: Plot Progression

The night had gone smoothly, well as smoothly as it could trying to explain this cluster fuck we were in. My sister and I had told Toby and Jim nearly everything about our situation, obviously leaving out the part where we come from a different universe and they were TV characters. Bottom line, we told them we woke up here with a house and no memories of how we got here, somehow got strange tattoos on our forearms and inherited a magic backpack and scroll. Oh, also how we turned into whatever we are now when we touched a magic stick and dagger. By the time we were done talking it was only 10 minutes before midnight, all of us looked tired. Between the whole magic transformations that took place yesterday and learning that Jim is the last resort against an evil plaguing the earth, we were ready to head to bed. We said our goodbyes and headed to our respective houses. I threw the house keys on the kitchen counter and pushed Aron up the stairs. My head barely hit the pillow before I zonked out.

********

Morning came faster than expected. We awoke to a call from the school "reminding" us that even though we are new transfers, the school will not tolerate absences and tardies. Groaning in unison, my sister and me get ready for school. In our slumber, our appearances had changed once again. Although I still had my horns and scales, they covered a smaller part of my body; instead of sprawling up and down my arms, shoulders, and neck, they only resided on my shoulders and biceps. Likewise, my horns were barely peeking out from my hair, although one could argue that my fluffy and tangled bed-hair was responsible for their concealment.

Similar changes had happened to my sister, feathers were clustered on her shoulders and biceps while only a few feathers dotted in her hair. For her, it would be easier to explain the feathers on her head as a type of hair clip or add-on but for me, I would have to wear a hat or hood. Horns are not exactly a popular cosmetic teenager would wear to school.

We both grumbled under our breaths throughout breakfast and on our way to school annoyed we have to wear thicker clothing and headwear in such hot and humid heat. The trip was over fast, our minds muddled from sleep and the anticipation of homework that was sure to come. We locked up our bikes and face the entrance to the school, mindlessly watching the stream of other similarly tired students work their way in. I turn to Aron.

"Remember, we are completely normal highschoolers with nothing crazy going on with our lives. We dread school and only worry about homework and our crippling social anxiety." I state.

" Okay, let's get this over with," Aron replies walking into the school. I slowly tread behind her with my shoulders slumped. Fuck school. Luckily the school day went by quick. Whether it was because of my own inattentiveness or a higher force was altering time, the school was nearing an end. It was the last period and the majority of the students were either studying in their free time or starting one of their club activities. I slam my locker shut and set my tired eyes on my sister.

"Please tell me you took notes." I ask.

"Omg, sis, you have got to be kidding me." Aron sighs.

"Jk, the classes were easy, I've got the academics covered. By the way, you need any help in Spanish? I think I saw your soul leave your body in there."

"Ugh, don't talk to me about Spanish class. Hey, let's catch up with Jim and Toby. Strickler's gonna do the weird 'hey imma go into the students' shower room' thing soon." Aron says grabbing her backpack and walking towards the duo.

"Man, some of these things you don't notice until now. You're right why the hell would a teacher do that?" Simply shrugging we join the group.

"-we'll both be committed." I hear Jim finish saying.

"Lmao and what about us, boys? I hear Area 51 is building a new sector lol." I interject making Aron roll her eyes at me and my joke.

"Hey, Charley. Hey, Aron." Jim greets us. "You look great today." Obviously referencing our ridiculous outfits and lack of scales/feathers. 

"Hardy har, Jim," Aron replies. "Anyway, what are you guys talking about?"

"How Jim is going to kick Steve's butt." Toby excitedly says, whirling his hands around and karate chopping the air.

"Woah, lil dude, you have a license for those weapons?" I joke. 

"Give up the dream, Tobes." The amulet dings in Jim's backpack and emits a faint blue glow.

"Does this thing run on batteries?" Toby asks, looking inside for the amulet.

"I hope not. Imagine the cost of upkeep." Aron says taking a peak. The school bell rings as students pass staring at us confused.

"What's it doing?" Toby asks before Jim closes the backpack.

"How should I know? It didn't come with a manual." 

"Does it feel like you're going to, you know, change?"

"Oh, no!"

"Fuck!" You can probably guess who said what.

" We've got to get you someplace that's not out here!" Toby hurryingly pushed Jim into the Boys' Shower rooms leaving us outside. Aron and glance at each other worryingly as we see Strickler come out from behind the lockers like a fucking creep.

"Yo, Mr. S! I have some questions about today's history lesson that would be amazing if you could ans-"

"Apologies, Miss. Knight, but today I'm a little busy with some other demanding tasks. Perhaps we could continue this tomorrow during my office hours?" Strickler says pushing past us into the shower room, barely giving us a glance. Welp, we tried. Rip in pieces guys.

We tag along with Jim and Toby to the gymnasium. More like JIMnasium amirite? Hahahahhaha kms. Entering backstage we could see Claire finishing her audition for Juliet. Damn, she's a good actor.

"Give me my Romeo. And when he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars, and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all of the world will be in love with the night." The audience claps for Claire and Miss Janeth takes notes on her clipboard. A totally normal audition if it wasn't for the fact that Jim is walking around in his Trollhunter get up. I nudge Aron a little and whisper in her ear.

"Damn, that's a lot of foreshadowing, amirite? Shakespeare must have been a fucking wizard to predict these events and put it in his play." I smile coyly at my sister. Even in the dim light of the backstage, I could see her roll her eyes and pull back a punch when she stops as Toby and Jim begin their conversation.

"It would have been easier to tell him that I'm a Trollhunter. I don't even know the play." Jim says frowning. Claire wraps up her audition and heads towards us backstage.

"John?" Claire refers to Jim.

"Um, Jim." Chuckling nervously, Jim straitens his posture obviously anxious talking to his crush. My sweet baby boy.

"And here I thought you didn't like Shakespeare."

"Oh, no, he's my favorite. I totally love him."

"Yeah he's Jim's favorite playwright, even has a few posters of him up on his wall. You kno-" I'm quickly silenced by Jim's angry glare. I give a shrug and mouth a quick apology. Sorry, Jimbo, had to do it. Claire smiles whether out of politeness or if she actually enjoyed Jim's teasing I couldn't tell before her attention focused on Jim's armor.

"That costume is incredible. Did you make it?" She asks amazed at its craftsmanship.

"No. He found a magical amulet that makes it." Toby says.

"You're funny." Claire chuckles. Jim also started to chuckle but in more of an 'I'm going to kill you Tobes and no one is going to find your body' kind of way.

"Yeah, you're a real comedian, aren't you?" Jim steps in front of Toby giving him a stern glare. Miss Janeth calls out for the next person to come forward, startling Jim.

"I think that's you're cue. Break a leg" Claire wishes Jim good luck and steps aside for him to enter the stage. This is gonna be good.

"I'd prefer that." Mumbles Jim walking toward center stage. Coughs and shuffling are heard from the crowd gathered in folding chairs. If one knew where to look, they would see Mr. Strickler fucking hiding behind one of the doors to the gymnasium. 

"Who are you?" Miss Janeth asks.

"James Lake Junior." Poor Jimbo.

"And what are you trying out for?"

"Uh, Romeo?" Poor, poor Jim.

"Well, we are all ears." Miss Janeth clicks her pen ready to take notes. Murmurs break out from the crowd as they are in awe of his armor. Jim looks towards us backstage for some reassurance so Toby, Aron and I held our thumbs up hoping to encourage our friend.

"Uh...'Destiny...'" He takes a deep breath to calm his nerves. I am so proud of my boy, first, he learns he's the Trollhunter then the next day completely wings the auditions and gets a lead role? What an amazing kid. "'Destiny is a gift. Some go their entire lives living in an existence of quiet desperation never learning the truth that what feels as though a burden pushing down upon our shoulders...'" Jim unsheaths his sword and points towards the crowd eliciting a gasp. "...is actually the sense of purpose that lifts us to greater heights. Never forget that fear is but the precursor to valor. That to strive and triumph in the face of fear is what it means to be a hero. Don't think. Become" The crowd errupts into applause, some onlookers even standing from their seats.

"Um, thank you." Jim humbly accepts their praise. Claire walks to the stage as Jim kneels down to greet her.

"Jim, that was remarkable."

"Really? I didn't even think. I just sort of said it." Claire laughs at Jim's ignorance of the art of acting.

"That's acting!" She puts a hand on Jim's shoulder. I'm sure Jim is about to fucking explode from both the anxiety of performing on stage and the fact that his crush has finally noticed his presence. Jim comes backstage and we all congratulate him on his performance. On the way to our lockers' his armor thankfully deactivates. We grab our stuff and get on our bikes to go home. My palms are already sweating for what's about to transpire. Bular.

"Dude! That was amazing! You were amazing! I'm amazed at how amazing you were!" Toby gushes over Jim at the intersection before we enter the construction zone. I look to Aron and see her sweating a little bit, not from riding on the bike but from worrying about Bular. I hope I'm fit enough to outrun a troll. Well, outbike.

"I can't believe that just happened." Jim bikes past the construction warning signs. Now I'm realizing that this may or may not be illegal to go biking through an ongoing construction zone.

"And did you see how that Chiquita was looking at you? Your armor totally did you a favor!"

"I'm still getting the hang of it." Jim replies to Toby. At this point, I'm fucking freaking out cause next turn fucking BULAR is gonna be there ready to ram us.

"The multi-eye guy said it reacts to your emotional state." Barely catching himself, Toby swerves over some random debris on the road. Yeah, definitely should not be in a construction zone. "The armor turns on when you're in distress."

"But I wasn't in distress back at school." Fuckfuckfuck here it goes boys. I'm ready to die again. A roar cuts through the silent evening as we see Bular standing further down the road. His orange eyes pierced through the shadows he was standing in. Goddamnit. We all collectively gasp and shit our pants.

"But I am now."

"Trollhunter. Merlin's Creation. Gunmar's Bane." Bular crouches low to the ground as if ready to charge. At this point, I'm fucking turning around my bike and watching Aron do the same. 

"I think he's talking to you." Toby whispers to Jim

"What do you think!?" Aron whisper yells back to the duo. Bular growls in rage in hits the street asphalt, which probably just finished setting. If I wasn't scared shitless, I'd be mourning the road and the construction workers' work that has gotten destroyed. The Trollhunter Killer inches towards the edge of the shadow which was slowly disappearing. Soon he would have free roam of the town.

"Look! He's afraid of the sun."Jim points out.

"Yeah, the sun that's FUCKING SETTING WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING FUCKING RUN?!" I yell back to the boys who even with me yelling at them, don't fucking run outta here. 

"The amulet! Surrender it and I will give you a speedy death." Bular threatens us.

"Doesn't know how to negotiate, this guy. Go, go, go!"

"FUCKING RUN DAMNIT!" I yell back to the duo as Aron and I have already sped off. Unfortunately, we had to slow down and wait for the boys because we don't know the roads or where the hell Delancey street is. All four of us are screaming our lungs out as a 12-foot tall troll is hot on our heals. You'd think with 4 teenagers screaming in the late evening and the thunderous tremors from a monster's footfalls would alert the town? Apparently not when you're the protagonists of a TV show? Fuck? We turn a corner and hide behind a row of trucks. Okay, keep it together, Charley. You know what's gonna happen just chill out man stop freaking out omg just focus on not dying. I take in a deep breathe. Then exhale. 

Yeah, didn't work.

"Armor up, armor up, armor up! Please, now! Faster!" Toby is begging Jim as we all wince at the sound of Bular fucking yeeting a 2 ton truck out of the road.

"Hurry!" Aron and I whisper scream to Jim.

"Okay. for the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command." The amulet briefly glows before becoming inert. "It's not working!" Bular inches closer to our hiding spot. We barely had enough time to hid behind the truck. A truck which could be easily lifted by the troll trying to kill us. A low growl comes from behind us as Jim tries to armor up again.

"For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command. Seriously, it's mine to command. I'm commanding here!" We all turn around to the sound of a 2-ton car being lifted over our heads with Bular barely straining against its weight. 

"Centuries of Trollhunters, and I will have killed two in almost as many days." Bular smirks in his apparent victory.

"He's good at math!" Toby yells

"Go, go, go!" Jim yells at us as we attempt to outrun a flying car hurling towards us. "Flying truck!"

"Incoming!"

"Fuc-AAAAAAH" I screech as we turn sharply onto another street. I see Aron to my left peddling faster than I have ever seen her peddle before. More trucks are flung our way as we violently peddle, following Jim and Toby. Past Aron, I can see Bular matching our speed.

"I'll flay the flesh from your bones!" He yells at us.

"I like my bones the way they are. Thanks!" Toby replies before gaining speed. Then we all swerve in separate directions as Bular fucking jumps right in the middle of the road. Holy fuck. We all nearly crashes as he swipes his hulking arms in our direction.

"Head down Delancey!" Jim shouts.

"Where the heck is Delancey!?" Aron shouts up at Jim and Toby.

"Just follow me!" Jim replies veering right onto another street, nearly colliding with another flying truck.

"Behind Stuart Electronics!"

"You know I can't fit there!"

"You can fit!"

"I can't"

"Either you fit or you fucking DIE!" I yell at Toby as me and Aron overtake him. Aron and I slip through the small alleyway, me almost crashing because of my long ass legs. We hear Bular roar in anger as we book it over the bridge. Turning onto a random street we are ready to pass out.

"Catch...my breath." Toby pants. "Look at me, look at me. We're not dead, right?"

"I wish I was dead."I reply grimly, slipping off my bike. To the right of the street, we see Blinky and Aaarrrgghh emerging from the bushes.

"Master Jim! Ha-ha!" Blinky greet happily ignorant to the danger rampaging towards us.

"Bular's trying to kill us! He chased us all over town!" Jim informs Blinky out of breath. I wipe the sweat from my brow and get ready for another round of 'holy-hell-I'm-gonna-die-if-I-don't-peddle-faster'.

"And you're still alive. I knew you had potential, Master Jim." Blinky congratulates to us.

"You have a sweet voice, but you bring death with you!" Toby accuses Blinky.

"We -gasp- gotta, gotta get outta here." I pant.

"You guys can fight him, right?" Jim asks the two trolls. The only response he got for his plea for help was laughter.

"I could not hope to possess the skill to defeat Bular." Blinky laughs as if we just told him the funniest joke in the multi-verse.

"What about him? He's big." Jim gestures to Aaarrrgghh.

"Pacifist." Was his only reply.

"Seriously." We all groan in annoyance.

"Man, such a waste of a hulking brute."Toby says patting Aaarrrgghh on the shoulder.

"Thank you."

"This is why there is a Trollhunter, Master Jim. Aaarrrgghh renounced the violent path ages ago." Blinky tries to explain to us until our attention was turned to Bular skidding out of his sprint towards our street. "Follow me! We'll be safe in Heartstone Trollmarket!" Blinky yells before running up the street. I vaguely saw Eli cheering in his room before watching the power lines above us fall on our heads. Aron, Jim, and I were fast enough to get past the death traps but poor Toby got caught on one of the poles. If I hadn't known he would get caught by Aaarrrgghh I'd be back peddling to get him but for now, he's safe. Dropping his bike, Toby gets carried off by Aaarrrgghh leaving Bular to get his foot stuck in the discarded bike. That bike is a hero. We all turn into the forest as I get a serious sense of Deja Vu.

"Master Jim! Don your armor!" Blinky yells back to us.

"I've been trying! The amulet won't listen to me!" Jim replies before speeding up.

"Did you speak the incantation?"

"I've been incanting the crap out of it, and it's not working!"

"Just focus and incant, dude!" Toby barely gets out as he clings on to Aaarrrgghh's fur. The edge of the canal quickly appears before us as we all race down the slope. Except for Jim.

"What the hell are you doing, Jim?!" I yell up to the new Trollhunter. I can barely hear him mumbling the incantation over the sound of Bular's heavy steps. Before we knew it, Jim shot through the sky like a glowing blue comet. He was safe in his armor, for now. The sword summoned itself and Jim struggled under its weight as he rose into a stance. Bular looked over the edge of the canal, looked Jimbo right in the eyes, and roared. What happened next is a definite mood.

"Uh...nope." Jim said before awkwardly running in his clunky armor. Bular swiftly cuts off Jim's route to us, forcing him to fight. 

"Use your sword, Master Jim!"

"I'll drink your blood out of a goblet made of your skull!" Bular looms over Jim ready to strike.

"Cut him like a meatloaf, Jim!"

"Fuck him up, Jimbo!" I yell with Toby.

Jim maneuvered his sword into a more comfortable position as Bular charges towards him. All we could do is watch as the armor glows and sends energy to the sword, probably saving Jim's life. The sword takes the brunt of the charge yet Jim still gets pushed back quite a few meters. Bular slams his fist into the ground in rage.

"We must work quickly. Open the portal! The Horngazel!" Blinky throws Aaarrrgghh the Horngazel but it missed its target. Aaarrrgghh did not catch the Horngazel. Ordinarily one would overlook this small fact, there's a battle going on, not everyone can catch a moving object every time. Except this isn't what happened in the show. I look towards Jim who was still fighting Bular. Those few precious seconds it took to pick up the Horngazel could cost Jim's life. Not on my watch.

I sprint towards to dueling pair as Aron yells at me to stop. For some reason, Aaarrrgghh didn't catch the Horngazel and I suspect it had something to do with us coming into this universe. If it's the last thing I do, I'll make sure the story goes the way it is supposed too.

"Master Jim, Master Charley! Come on!" Blinky yells to Jim who was a being circled by Bular. I was only halfway to the duo.

"I'm a little busy here." Almost there.

"You are not fit to wield the amulet. I'll tear the armor off you! Along with your skin!" Bular swings one of his swords toward Jim. I'm so close. Jim takes a swing but his sword gets lodged into Bular's arm. Jim drops the sword as I pull him to run. Bular easily dislodged the sword in one throw and turns towards where we would be. Pulling Jim along I hear Toby and Aron egging us onwards toward the portal. So close.

The portal closes as we slam into the wall. Fuck. I turn toward the charging Bular and step in front of Jim. His armor powers down as the amulet falls from his chest. Alright, no biggie. Just hold on for a few extra seconds then the timeline should go back to normal. A few seconds against a fucking troll! Bular flings his swords towards us barely missing our heads. Still, no open portal to pull us in. I feel a tingling along my skin as it spreads across my arms and face, I could feel a growing weight on my head as my horns grew. Soon I looked like I had when I touched that dagger. The Dagger! I fish through the backpack for the dagger. Shit. Where is it? Bular's eyes widened as he saw my scales crawl across my skin.

"Dragon." He yells before smiling and running faster towards us. I close my eyes, praying to whatever deity that would listen that those few extra seconds have passed and I won't have to die again. Bular was only a few meters away from us when I felt myself tugged backwards. I fall to the ground inside the cavern, whimpering along with Toby and Jim. Aron rushes to my side the punches me in the gut.

"You stupid freaking - Charley stop doing this dumb crap or your gonna die!" Aron yells at me before hugging me. The cave reverberated with Bular's fists as he tried to get in. 

"He nearly...We nearly... He almost..." Jim began to hyperventilate along with Toby whilst I could only stare in shock. 

"Almost what? Speak, Master Jim." Blinky asks us.

"He almost killed us!" Jim and I yell in unison. Aron and Toby wince at our loud voices. I stand up with the help of my sister. Ugh, my stomach.

"'Almost'! A very important word. A life of 'almost' is a life of never." We stand exasperated at Blinky's attitude as we watch him near the staircase to Heartstone Trollmarket. 

"Why'd the armor suddenly shut off?"

"And why'd I go all scaly and shit?" Jim and I ask Blinky.

"Master Jim, you are the first human to possess an amulet crafted for trolls. it's to be expected its behavior will be... unexpected. As for you, Master Charley, I haven't the faintest idea. Perhaps these strange happenings work in a way similar to the amulet? I have very little knowledge on dragons but magic generally works in the same way; through the emotional state of the user and the user's intent. Come along we will have to research at a later time." Blinky steps onto the crystalline staircase as we all gasp when it lights up. "This way, Masters, this way." We slowly make our way down the gigantic steps in awe at the bright blue color.

"Are you sure we're safe in here?" Toby asks Blinky.

"Indeed. The incantation forbids entry to Heartstone Trollmarket by GummGumms such as Bular, for they are the most fearsome of trolls." Blinky explains. Jim looks back towards Aaarrrgghh.

"GummGumms?" He asks.

"Scary ones." Aaarrrgghh replies with an anxious look on his face. My poor baby.

"Okay, wait, wait. So, Bular can't get in here, right? Into Heartstone Trollmarket?"

"No, Master Jim." Blinky grabs Jim's shoulders and turns him around to face Heartstone Trollmarket. "This is the world you are bound to protect. This is Heartstone Trollmarket!"

To say I was impressed would have been an understatement.

**Author's Note:**

> This book is also posted on Wattpad by the same author. Thank you for reading.


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